Associate Vice President, Alumni and Community Experiences

University of Chicago; United States; Hybrid; USD 256,000 - 302,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Benefits eligible

Job summary

The University of Chicago Advancement team seeks a strategic AVP to guide alumni and donor engagement across a global network. You will shape experiences, lead high-performing teams, and align programs with the Chicago Minds campaign and campus priorities.

Hybrid work with demanding expectations for fundraising, engagement growth, and fiscal stewardship. You will partner with senior leaders, volunteers, and schools to maximize impact and cultivate enduring relationships.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree preferred.
• Minimum ten years of professional work experience in nonprofit management, development, alumni relations, marketing, or similar field.
• Minimum five years of successfully managing, coaching, and motivating staff.
• Minimum three years of experience developing and monitoring budgets.
• Superior analytical and prioritization skills; thrive in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong leadership qualities with ability to delegate and execute.

Responsibilities

• Lead advancement teams and oversee alumni relations, stewardship, annual giving, communications, and event programming.
• Develop and implement a comprehensive vision for alumni and community engagement aligned with campaign goals.
• Oversee budgets, resources, and ensure efficient, timely program execution.
• Partner with University leadership, boards, and stakeholders to drive engagement and philanthropy.
• Drive donor relations strategy and a centralized direct marketing/annual giving program.

Skills

Vision

Strategic alignment

Talent development

Data-informed decision-making

Executive leadership

Collaboration

Operational excellence

Budget management

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Advanced degree

Tools

Phoenix

Donor Relationship Mgmt System

Microsoft Outlook

Excel

PowerPoint

Word

Access

Job description

Job Information

The University of Chicago Advancement team cultivates lifelong connections with more than 220,000 alumni, current students, parents, and friends worldwide, building community through intellectual, professional, and other meaningful experiences on campus, around the world and online. Advancement empowers every division, school, department, and institute to thrive, generating support for esteemed faculty, pioneering researchers, visionary practitioners, and ambitious students.

Our work is rooted in the belief that meaningful connection and lasting experiences inspire ambassadorship and enduring commitment. We champion a culture of innovation and excellence, inviting every member of our community to participate in a future defined by creativity, intellectual rigor, and shared purpose.

Through collaborative partnerships, strategic stewardship, and investment in talent, Advancement is reimagining alumni and donor engagement while ensuring UChicago remains a catalyst of impact for generations to come.

Job Summary

Reporting directly to Vice President Armin Afsahi, this leader will join the Advancement executive leadership team and provide strategic direction and oversight for key teams that drive community building and engagement. This role demands a collaborative, change-oriented leader who will strengthen the University’s capacity to deliver meaningful experiences, develop talent across the organization, and ensure its global community remains deeply connected to the institution’s mission and future. As a critical partner to senior academic and administrative leaders, volunteer boards, and University stakeholders, the AVP will craft and execute strategies that inspire alumni, donors, and friends to deepen their commitment to UChicago. The role is also central to executing the University’s ambitious Chicago Minds campaign launching in 2026, positioning this leader as a key architect in achieving historic fundraising and engagement goals. The successful candidate will bring a passion for creating meaningful, human-centered experiences that deepen constituent connection, a talent for inspiring and developing high-performing teams, and a proven ability to innovate and execute programs that resonate with today’s alumni and donors. The AVP will champion a culture of excellence and impact by fostering an environment where staff are empowered to deliver transformative programs and build enduring connections across the University’s vibrant global network.

Responsibilities

• Experience Architecture - serve as the institution’s chief architect of constituent experiences, designing a cohesive and intentional experience pathway that deepens connection, inspires belonging, and reflects the University’s values at every engagement touchpoint.
• Identify and strengthen the signature experiences that define the UChicago community and give alumni, parents, and friends compelling reasons to remain engaged across a lifetime.
• Strategic Leadership and Vision - develop and implement a comprehensive vision for alumni and community engagement that aligns University priorities and the goals of the upcoming campaign, setting measurable objectives that drive participation, donor retention, and volunteer leadership.
• Change Leadership - lead thoughtfully and ambitiously through a period of meaningful organizational change. Assess current capabilities and performance with honesty and rigor, establish a clear direction for growth, and bring staff and partners forward with confidence.
• Balance the need to preserve what is working with the imperative to strengthen and evolve what is not.
• Integrated Portfolio Oversight - provide oversight and strategic direction for critical Advancement functions, including alumni relations, stewardship, annual giving, communications, and event programming while ensuring cohesive, innovative, and mission-driven initiatives.
• Campaign Strategy Execution - lead the campaign execution in partnership with the Advancement leadership, ensuring volunteer leaders are activated and prepared to serve as effective ambassadors of the University, and create intentional experiences that drive constituent engagement and philanthropic support.
• Donor Relations Strategy - drive the development of a comprehensive donor relations operating strategy that strengthens stewardship and impact communication.
• Annual Giving - design an innovative, centralized direct marketing / annual giving program to strengthen and expand the institutional pipeline, increasing donor acquisition and retention rates and generating critical unrestricted resources on a yearly basis.
• The AVP will bring a contemporary and integrated philosophy to this work, demonstrating command of evolving industry trends and ensuring annual giving is connected strategically to the broader goals of engagement and the campaign.
• Team Development - invest actively in identifying, nurturing, and developing talent across the organization.
• Understand what individual team members need in order to grow and create conditions where they are empowered to take ownership, assume accountability, and build meaningful careers.
• Model the caliber of leadership expected throughout the organization.
• Seeks opportunities for professional development that will enhance job performance, including building networks within the University and with colleagues at peer institutions and with an eye towards broadly diversifying the advancement profession.
• Performs other related work as needed.

Competencies

• Vision and Enthusiasm for the Role - the successful candidate will be genuinely inspired by this opportunity and energized by the scope of change already underway at UChicago Advancement.
• Strategic Alignment - work across the enterprise to foster cohesion among systems, people, culture, strategies, and tactics. Ensure teams have clear, shared priorities and hold staff responsible for focusing on and implementing the strategy.
• Build talent and operational capacity to meet current and future enterprise needs.
• Continuous Improvement - drive a culture of data-informed decision-making, continuous evaluation, and innovation to adapt to evolving institutional needs and the dynamic landscape of higher education advancement.
• Team Development - provide guidance and support to help team members learn and grow.
• Create a challenging and supportive environment for direct reports and others to assume ownership for programs and results, take intelligent risks, and learn from mistakes.
• Provide direct feedback and coaching that ensures accountability, professional development, and team success.
• Innovative and Accountable Leadership - approach the work with a spirit of experimentation and measured risk-taking, accepting the invitation to test new ideas, learn from outcomes, and build a culture where thoughtful failure is a pathway to growth.
• Champion shared accountability by fostering mutual trust and ensuring that bold ambitions are matched by disciplined follow-through.
• Partnership and Collaboration - cultivate strong, collaborative relationships with University leadership, volunteer leaders, and other partners across schools, divisions, and units to amplify engagement efforts and foster a unified, university-wide approach to advancement.
• Connect with peer organizations and professional associations to build UChicago Advancement’s national reputation and presence.
• Ensure partners’ experience is top of mind in all areas of Advancement activity.
• Operational Excellence and Fiscal Management - oversee departmental budgets and resources with financial acumen, fostering operational excellence and ensuring efficient, timely, and cost-effective execution of programs and initiatives.
• Executive Leadership Presence - operate as a sophisticated, emotionally intelligent member of the Advancement executive team, bringing the strategic perspective, interpersonal acuity, and institutional awareness required to lead at this level of a complex research university.

Additional Responsibilities Education, Experience or Certifications

• Education: Bachelor’s degree required. Advanced degree preferred.
• Experience: Minimum ten years of professional work experience in nonprofit management, development, alumni relations, marketing, or similar field. A record of success working with faculty, senior administrators, trustees, and other key internal and external stakeholders.
• Minimum five years of successfully managing, coaching, and motivating staff required.
• Minimum three years of experience developing, and monitoring budgets required.
• Superior analytical and prioritization skills; embrace challenges and thrive in a demanding, fast-paced environment.
• Strong leadership qualities, including the ability both to delegate and execute, thereby leading by word and example required.
• Flexibility to adapt in an emerging and changing environment required.

Technical Knowledge or Skills

• Demonstrated skill and knowledge of, or ability to learn quickly, the internal workings of the University as well as the technology tools available to Advancement, including Phoenix, the University’s Donor Relationship Management System.
• Proficient in a Microsoft Windows computer environment, especially Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Access.

Working Conditions and Physical Requirements

This position has a hybrid work schedule which includes weekly in office presence. Standard office environment. Travel to campus and/or non-campus locations for University business. Work evenings and weekends as needed. This position is located in Hyde Park at 5235 South Harper Court.

Required Documents

• Resume/CV (required)
• Cover Letter (required)

Job Family Senior Administrators

• Scheduled Weekly Hours 37.5
• Drug Test Required
• No Health Screen Required
• No Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required
• Pay Frequency Monthly
• Pay Rate Type Salary
• FLSA Status Exempt
• Pay Range $275,000.00 - $325,000.00

Benefits

Benefits Eligible Yes The University of Chicago offers a wide range of benefits programs and resources for eligible employees, including health, retirement, and paid time off. Information about the benefit offerings can be found in the Benefits Guidebook.

Posting Statement

The University of Chicago is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or expression, national or ethnic origin, shared ancestry, age, status as an individual with a disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, or other protected classes under the law. For additional information please see the University’s Notice of Nondiscrimination.

Safety & Security Report

The University of Chicago's Annual Security & Fire Safety Report (Report) provides information about University offices and programs that provide safety support, crime and fire statistics, emergency response and communications plans, and other policies and information. The Report can be accessed online at: http://securityreport.uchicago.edu. Paper copies of the Report are available, upon request, from the University of Chicago Police Department, 850 E. 61st Street, Chicago, IL 60637.

Institution Overview

The University of Chicago is an urban research university that has driven new ways of thinking since 1890. Our commitment to free and open inquiry draws inspired scholars to our global campuses, where ideas are born that challenge and change the world. We empower individuals to challenge conventional thinking in pursuit of original ideas. Students in the College develop critical, analytic, and writing skills in our rigorous, interdisciplinary core curriculum. Through graduate programs, students test their ideas with UChicago scholars, and become the next generation of leaders in academia, industry, nonprofits, and government. To learn more about the university click here http://www.uchicago.edu/